The Shipwrecked Man and the Sea
A SHIPWRECKED MAN, having been cast upon a certain shore, slept
after his buffetings with the deep. After a while he awoke, and
looking upon the Sea, loaded it with reproaches. He argued that
it enticed men with the calmness of its looks, but when it had
induced them to plow its waters, it grew rough and destroyed
them. The Sea, assuming the form of a woman, replied to him:
"Blame not me, my good sir, but the winds, for I am by my own
nature as calm and firm even as this earth; but the winds
suddenly falling on me create these waves, and lash me into
fury."